Feeling the killing intent radiating out of Mane, Dan was slightly taken aback. As someone who had killed his fair share of people and had sent off many into the underworld prematurely, he was very sensitive to killing intent. The density of blood that whirled around Mane's figure as he spoke of killing people was almost as much as, if not more than his! He felt like he could hear the voices of those who had fallen victim to Mane's sword screaming for justice, and the strength of their voices shook his soul. So much so that he was sure that each of these victims were strong enough to hold their own in this world. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly Mane's life was before he met him.
"Wait," Dan felt a strange energy that shook him out of his thoughts. They had just found the exit of the forest and were about leaving, but he could feel a few strange presences outside the forest. They were lying in wait.
"Someone's waiting for us," Dan stated plainly. He didn't seem particularly concerned about whatever was waiting for them.
"He's right. I can feel the presence of about 6 creatures. They are Magical Beasts. They bear the image of those Banshee things that you read about." Hildegarde flew higher into the sky and surveyed the land from above. She promptly returned with news of what she had found, confirming that Dan was right.
"They are Magical Beasts," Dan stated but Mane wasn't new to this information. Hildegarde had just told him this after all. There was something else he wanted to know.
"Aren't they supposed to be in the Enchanted Forest?" Enchanted Forests were given that name because they were littered with Magical Beasts. A wild forest like the one they had just hunted in didn't have any of such creatures. At most one may be able to find pseudo Magical Beasts like the Long Horned Wildebeests, but not an actual Magical Beast.
"Well we caused a ruckus here, so it is no surprise that we have drawn the attention of a few Magical Beasts. You remember that every Magical Beast of the High Class has its own territory right?" Dan replied, and Mane nodded understandingly. Turns out that this was all his fault.
Normally Magical Beasts claimed their territories on Enchanted Forest Land but there were exceptions. Magical Beasts like the Banshee that were great at manipulating the minds of others claimed lands in other forests. They used the normal beasts as cannon fodder whenever they run into a brick wall to get away since these beasts were far easier to break down mentally and control than Magical Beasts. Since Mane had killed more than 70% of their 'livestock', they were obviously not going to sit idle. They would come to investigate. It just so happened that they were bound to meet each other outside the confines of the forest. Which honestly sounded like a stupid idea since Banshees weren't physically capable of much and would be better fighting covertly under the cover of trees than out in the open.
"Let me take care of this quickly," Dan stated and tried lifting his hand but someone stopped him.
"What are you doing?" Dan looked at his hand that was being held in Mane's palm. Although the boy's grip was strong, Dan could have gotten out easily if he wanted. But he didn't want to hurt Mane so he didn't.
"Please allow me to do this," Mane besieged his guardian.
"I told you that I wasn't going to allow you to go after Magical Beasts – and you agreed." Dan reminded Mane of their bargain.
"I did. But I didn't come for them. They came for me." Mane argued, and Dan could already feel a headache coming. When it came to a war with words, he wasn't the one to go to.
"Please let me do this. If you think I'm in trouble you can just appear and save me anyways," Mane tried to convince Dan. After seeing the tallest building in the village collapse last night under this man's forceful hand, Mane was certain that nothing could happen to him as long as he was under Dan's protection.
"Fine," Dan struggled internally for a while, but finally gave in. Once he did, an excited grin etched itself onto Mane's face as he said to the hearing of Hildegarde who remained hidden and Dan who was still a bit worried,
"It's time to repay the favor I guess."
Hildegarde instantly understood that Mane was referring to the fact that a Banshee had attacked him right when he crossed over into this world and that he finally had the chance to get back at them. But Dan wasn't sure what Mane meant. Although he could sense that there were Magical Beasts waiting outside, he wasn't a scout and didn't know the territories of the Magical Beasts, so he was unsure of which race of Magical Beasts had claimed this as its territory. But once they exited the forest and he saw the beasts that stood in his way, he understood Mane's statement. Although he was baffled and confused as to how Mane knew that the place belonged to the Banshees, this was neither the time nor place to ask. Besides, he assumed that Mane had found this out (the territory of Banshees) in the books he had given the boy.
6 Banshees stood in the way, one of them biggest and largest than the rest. They were all High Class Magical Beasts, and the one with the largest frame was the strongest of them all and radiated the powerful aura of a peak High Class Magical Beast. Upon seeing Mane and Dan exit the forest, it screamed in rage.
*Scree*
A powerful shockwave swept towards the two men. Dan was unmoved at all. He actually looked a bit bored. But his eyes roamed over Mane's body as he prepared to jump into action and save his ward if need be. But upon seeing Mane' figure, he was stunned.
Dan had a great memory, and that was why there was no way he was going to forget how he met Mane. He met Mane in an Enchanted Forest, passed out and under the mercy of a Banshee. This meant that Mane should have been vulnerable to the scream of the large Banshee male. After all, the one that Mane fell prey to had a much weaker aura than those before them. But Mane was unmoved. There was a slight smile on his face even, as if mocking the attempts of the Banshee male to incapacitate him. Mental strength was different from physical strength. It wasn't easy to improve on one's physical abilities, but growing mentally was much harder than growing physically. There was no way Mane had grown strong enough to withstand a Banshee's scream in just a month. Which meant…
"It wasn't the Banshee that hurt him. So what was it?" Dan wondered. But he wasn't bound to receive an answer, especially in here.
The Banshees looked visibly confused seeing that both men were unaffected by their leader's screams. They looked at each other, and together with their leader they screamed again.
*SCREE*
This time the shockwave was stronger, and the attack on the mind several times more potent. Yet the intended targets looked unimpressed. Dan was still bored, and Mane still had that mocking smile on his face.
"Is that all?" Mane looked visibly disappointed and the Banshees finally looked panicked, much to Dan's amusement. Banshees were physically weaker than other high classes. Their trump card was their powerful screeches that could disturb the souls of even some High Classes. But as long as that was ineffective, they were basically lambs to the slaughter.
As Mane was about to make a move, he saw the largest male Banshee turn back and scream.
"It seems to be calling something," Hildegarde stated, and Dan repeated the same thing right after. Luckily, they quickly got a confirmation to their suspicions when a large beast which was about 8 feet in height and 10 feet in length made an appearance. The dog shaped beast had green fur, which Mane thought was a weird fashion choice, and two tails. Once the beast made its appearance, the Banshees looked much more composed. They looked at Mane and Dan threateningly and seemed to be begging them to come and fight with their gaze.
"It would be rude of us not to oblige," Mane laughed and dashed forward.
"Wait! That's a Two-Tailed Gunner Dog!" Dan exclaimed, but Mane didn't bother to stop. Of course he knew what that beast was.
The book Dan gave him was very detailed, and a fairly common beast like the Two-Tailed Gunner Dog was obviously included in the Magical Beasts section. This beast was a High Class Magical Beast with powerful physical abilities. Even amongst the High Classes it stood at the forefront, and was a powerful force to reckon with. It was fast, extremely strong with powerful jaws and had great stamina. But its signature move was what people called the Gunner Blast. This beast had the strange ability of shooting out red energy balls from its mouth. These energy balls were unusually powerful and could break through the defense of even a peak High Class Magical Beast and a few weaker Mythic Classes. However, they weren't so bright; and since the Two-Tailed Gunner Dog was so stupid, it wasn't a surprise that it was being controlled by the Banshees.
*Roar*
The dog barked threateningly at Mane and jumped at him, eagerly welcoming his embrace. Mane was within its range in a thrice, but once he was close enough he suddenly jumped to the side and did a small roll. No sooner had he left his prior position when a large paw descended upon the ground and created a small crater.
*Bang*
Mane was back to his feet in not time. He didn't unsheathe the sword strapped to his back or look like he even planned to. His figure flashed and he reappeared next to the Two-Tailed Gunner Dog and struck it cleanly on the head.
*Bang*
*Whelp*
Along with a loud bang and a whelp of pain, the massive dog was sent flying back a few metres.
"Fast and strong," Dan nodded as he acknowledged Mane's prowess.
"But that is hardly enough," Dan added. Sure enough, the dog was up in no time. It gazed at Mane with a bit of hesitation and wariness. It wasn't smart, but it knew whom to pick a fight with. But soon a loud scream forced its way into its ears and its hesitation was washed away. All that was left was rage and malice, and that was directed at Mane.
*Roar*
Along with a mighty roar, it opened its large mouth and several specks of light gathered right in front of it.
"What are you doing? You shouldn't let it complete the fire ball!" Dan screamed from the sidelines, but Mane was currently distracted.
"Do you feel that, Hildegarde?" Mane mumbled to the hearing of the fairy right next to him. Hildegarde nodded her head and replied, "Yes. It feels like…"
"Edict"